U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,093 discloses a denester with a vertically oriented magazine for accommodating a stack of trays. U.S. Pat. No. 4,048,915 discloses a denester with a magazine that is inclined relative to the drop-down surface. In both cases, the number of trays and the weight of the stack of trays are limited, since otherwise the contact load of the tray flange on the destacking screw would become so high that the tray flange may deform. During the destacking process of the individual trays, the contact load decreases continuously until the magazine will be empty. Accordingly, a need exists for a denester without the above-mentioned limitations.